Hi and thanks for visiting the best Ravens forum on the planet. You do not have to be a member to browse the various forums, but in order to post and interact with your purple brethren, you will have to **register**. It only takes a couple of minutes. You can also use your Facebook account to log in....just click on the blue 'FConnect' link at the very top of the page.

@ Carolina Panthers

A couple friends and I are planning on taking the show on the road next year to see the Ravens play in Charlotte. Any advice on retaurants/bars to go/avoid would be great. We'll also be looking for a decent place to park and tailgate.

Never get in a fight with a pig; you both get muddy, and the pig likes it...

Re: @ Carolina Panthers

My husband went to Elon and has friends down there so we'll be heading to this game too. There's decent parking and tailgating. We went down 6 years ago when the Ravens opened the season down there. Found no trouble parking. Stayed at the Doubletree in Charlotte and there were quite a few bars within walking distance (it's a good thing). Can't remember the names but we had a good time. Stadium didn't even sell out for a home opener and there was a LOT of purple there. Fans are pretty decent. Most of them were cool and left you alone. Had a few who acted like they were just there because they couldn't get tickets to a Nascar race and treated us like we were wearing "I hate Dale Earnhardt" shirts. But we had a great time even though we ended up losing. Tickets are easy to come by. Stadium is OK, nothing special.

Sick and tired of transplants. If Pissburgh is so great, carry your black-lung asses back there.

Re: @ Carolina Panthers

Howdy. Lurking around the message boards for teams we face next year and thought I'd drop a few hints to you for your trip to the lovely Bank of America stadium.

First off, I'm not a Charlotte native so I can't recomend bars/restaraunts to hit up, but if you're making the trip you do have to try the BBQ before you leave (both lexington and carolina style if you can manage). Everyone down here will tell you what the best place is, but in all reality you won't find a terrible place to eat some good pig as long as it isn't a chain. There's also a couple of local NC breweries worth looking into during your trip. I recommend getting a glass of Red Oak or DuckRabbit Milk Stout if you come across them.

Second, be careful of the stadiums policies against being too......outlandish. Charlotte gets blasted constantly for being a "wine and cheese" crowd, and its true. Fans have been kicked out for cheering too loudly. It sucks. We're trying to get it fixed, but its something to look into.

Finally, if you're looking for a decent tailgate, the good folks at carolinahuddle.com offer a free tailgate for every homegame. Good people to hook up with.

And that's about all I've got. Hit that website up for some people who will be more helpful than I will be.

Re: @ Carolina Panthers

Originally Posted by octscotts

My husband went to Elon and has friends down there so we'll be heading to this game too. There's decent parking and tailgating. We went down 6 years ago when the Ravens opened the season down there. Found no trouble parking. Stayed at the Doubletree in Charlotte and there were quite a few bars within walking distance (it's a good thing). Can't remember the names but we had a good time. Stadium didn't even sell out for a home opener and there was a LOT of purple there. Fans are pretty decent. Most of them were cool and left you alone. Had a few who acted like they were just there because they couldn't get tickets to a Nascar race and treated us like we were wearing "I hate Dale Earnhardt" shirts. But we had a great time even though we ended up losing. Tickets are easy to come by. Stadium is OK, nothing special.

Just pointing out a few things here. First, you're talking about 8 years ago...2002. You've gotta remember that we were coming off the worst record in team history with little to no hope outside of getting a new head coach. Then you've gotta remember that there are a lot of bandwagon bitches in NC (see: 2003 Carolina Hurricanes Stanley Cup run). Parking has gotten worse since we went to the Super Bowl. And more expensive.

Also, easiest way to get tickets is through PSL owners. Most seats on the lower level of the stadium are PSL seats now. If you're trying for regular sale, usually all you'll wind up with is nosebleed seats. Just something to keep in mind there.

Finally, to avoid the parking and the walking masses, I'd suggest using Charlotte's new light rail system LYNX. There's a stop within walking distance of the stadium. Much easer on the nerves.

Re: @ Carolina Panthers

Originally Posted by INGBA

Just pointing out a few things here. First, you're talking about 8 years ago...2002. You've gotta remember that we were coming off the worst record in team history with little to no hope outside of getting a new head coach. Then you've gotta remember that there are a lot of bandwagon bitches in NC (see: 2003 Carolina Hurricanes Stanley Cup run). Parking has gotten worse since we went to the Super Bowl. And more expensive.

Also, easiest way to get tickets is through PSL owners. Most seats on the lower level of the stadium are PSL seats now. If you're trying for regular sale, usually all you'll wind up with is nosebleed seats. Just something to keep in mind there.

Finally, to avoid the parking and the walking masses, I'd suggest using Charlotte's new light rail system LYNX. There's a stop within walking distance of the stadium. Much easer on the nerves.

I will concur with the BBQ tip and roadside joints are usually the best. We travel to NC often and never miss a chance to grab some. I'm not surprised to hear parking has gotten worse and more expensive. I think that's everywhere. Yes, we're going with PSL owners so tickets are not a problem. I still think you'll see a lot of purple. We may not get credit for it but the Ravens fan base travels extremely well. Considering it's a fairly easy drive, with southern weather, in a decent town where we go infrequently, it'll probably be a good choice for an away game. We're tailgating with Panther friends but I'd be interested to hear any feed back from fans who use the LYNX for future reference. All in all, as I said, the fans are generally decent. I came across a few who wanted to start the whole "you stole your team, blah, blah, blah". I politely pointed out that that wouldn't have happened if the NFL hadn't given expansion teams to Charlotte (who couldn't sell their opening game out back then) and Jacksonville, who still covers seats to get games televised. Glad to see the Panther franchise has stabilized and seen some success. Nice to see football on Tobacco Road.

Sick and tired of transplants. If Pissburgh is so great, carry your black-lung asses back there.